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Wake Forest had beaten the two top-ranked teams in the nation before its game with Syracuse Sunday.

The Demon Deacons defeated then-No. 2 Virginia 3-0 on the road on Sept. 15 before edging then-No. 1 Stanford 1-0 on Sept. 19. Wake Forest sat second in the Atlantic Coast Conference standings entering Sunday’s match. Meanwhile, the Orange were in 15th and one of four teams winless in conference play.

Wake Forest’s recent successes have come from its attacking trident of Caiya Hanks, Emily Colton and Emily Murphy. In the Demon Deacons’ last three games, the trio has combined for five goals and three assists.

Hanks, Colton and Murphy’s attacking dominance carried over to No. 5 Wake Forest’s (8-2-2, 3-1-1 ACC) 3-0 win at Syracuse (6-6-1, 0-5-0 ACC) Sunday. Hanks broke the deadlock in the third minute and added a second 11 minutes into the second half. Both of Hanks’ strikes were assisted by Murphy.

Colton, the reigning ACC Offensive Player of the Week, added a third goal in the 65th minute — which Hanks set up.

Each goal was eerily similar, but SU couldn’t stop them. On all three goals, the Demon Deacons held the ball inside and then sprung it to the flank. But then, Wake Forest would serve the ball back into the center in front of the goal and pounce to finish the chance.

SU head coach Nicky Thrasher Adams said SU was exposed on its marking in the box, something that she said has not been a problem for her team previously.

“Three goals, three the same way,” she said postgame.

The head coach then shaped her body to demonstrate how her team was not checking its shoulders and was not on its toes to pick up the runs of the opposing Demon Deacons.

Syracuse’s start, which allowed the Demon Deacons to open the scoring in the third minute, also drew the ire of Adams. Hanks drove inside the final third, operating in the half-space before laying it off to Emily Morris. Morris sprayed a pass out wide to Murphy, who took on her defender Kylen Grant, putting her on her back foot and getting to the end line. Murphy’s cut-back cross met Hanks in stride, and she bundled home the finish.

“(Wake Forest) did not take a second off that entire game no matter what was going on,” Adams said. “And for us, I think we were obviously not ready at the beginning of the game to let an early goal in.”

Syracuse gained traction during the rest of the first half and held Wake Forest to nine shots and four shots on target, with none seriously challenging SU goalkeeper Shea Vanderbosch. Vanderbosch entered the game with an ACC-leading 50 saves and notched eight more Sunday.

In the seventh minute, Hanks fired a shot that stung the gloves of Vanderbosch, but the goalkeeper claimed the loose ball to end the danger. Wake Forest’s first-half chances came on long-range efforts as the Orange afforded the Demon Deacons space on the outside of the area, holding their defensive line back.

But, in the 56th minute, after a promising end to the first half by Syracuse and a minute after a shot by Liesel Odden forced a save from Wake Forest goalkeeper Valentina Amaral, Hanks gave Wake Forest an insurance goal.

Murphy picked the ball up on the right wing and drove at the retreating SU backline. She was given plenty of space and took advantage of it. On her cross, Murphy found the onrushing Hanks, who put the goal away. It was the Hawaii native’s fifth goal on the season.

Soon after, two goals became three for the Demon Deacons. For the third consecutive game, Colton found the back of the net. Hanks used her speed to get past Iba Oching on the left side and sent the ball into the box. Murphy ran to the front post, drawing SU defense out, but let the ball run through her legs and fall to an unmarked Colton near the six-yard box. Colton made no mistake, tucking her finish into the bottom right corner.

In total, the attacking trio of Hanks, Murphy and Colton managed 14 shots, seven of which were on target, against Syracuse. They terrorized the Orange’s backline from the outset to when they exited the game once it was decided. SU has conceded 14 goals in its five ACC matches, and Adams called for her backline to make adjustments.

“I did not think we were organized well in the box,” Adams said. “When the ball went wide, we are losing marks, and at the end of the day, you can’t lose marks when your hips are facing the ball and you don’t know what’s coming behind you. It’s not good enough.”

Published on September 29, 2024 at 6:27 pm

Contact Nicholas: njalumka@syr.edu | @nalumkal